Words Left Unspoken
by shopgirl152
Summary: It's the words we leave unspoken, and the words we wished we'd never said, that are destined to haunt us. one-shot. Phinerb.


**A/N 1: **Inspired by the song Waitin on Joe by Steve Azar. I really love this song and have been wanting to write a fic for it _forever_. Enjoy!

* * *

_7 a.m. _

He hadn't been the same since the accident. One minute he had left his brother in the backyard with their amateur chemistry set, and the next, his brother had been injured.

He'd heard the explosion from a mile away. By the time Ferb had reached the backyard, Baljeet had been in hysterics, running about wildly, shrieking something incomprehensible about Nitro Glycerin, socks, and a massive explosion.

Without thinking about it, the British boy had picked the red head up, racing him to Danville Hospital.

That had been eight years ago. Phineas had survived the explosion, but his brother was different somehow. Slower. The curiosity and boundless imagination was still there, shining bright as ever. But the missing right arm and stilted gait were painful reminders of the accident.

An accident Ferb should have been able to prevent. Even now, as he struggled to get out of bed and face the day, regret washed over him. The young man sighed, swinging his feet out of bed and crossing to the window. He opened the window, exhaling the early morning air.

Gravity Falls wasn't much of a place to live; it wasn't exciting and there wasn't a ton of stuff to do, but it provided him and his brother with gainful employment and decent pay. Employment the red head was capable of doing.

Speaking of the red head…

He looked over at the other bed. "Phin?" No response. "Phin, you awake?" The young man tiptoed to the bed, pulling back the covers. His heart stopped. "Phin, where are you?" His ears perked up at the sound of laughter coming from below the window. Quickly, he threw on a white beater shirt, racing downstairs and out the door. "Phin!"

The red head looked up, grinning at him. "Ferb!"

"What are—what are you doing out here? I thought I told you to wait for me before going outside."

He looked apologetic. "I'm sorry Bro. I was going to wait, but then I heard a noise downstairs and had to check it out." He motioned to some nearby bushes. "I made five new friends. Come on out guys!"

Ferb raised a brow as five perfect looking men emerged from the bushes.

"Ferb, I'd like you to meet Greggy C, Creggy G, Leggy P, Chubby Z and Deep Chris." He leaned over, whispering conspiratorially. "Don't tell the others, but Deep Chris is my favorite."

"Yo Dawg. What's up?" One of them asked.

He looked at the red head. "Which one just spoke?"

"Dunno. They kinda talk in unison. They've been helping me come up with new ideas for inventions."

"Yeah Dawg. The way I see it, we can build a massive stadium where everyone can see us perform."

"No. That ain't alright Leggy P. We're free now. Why don't we hug a buncha trees yo?"

"Or make like a tree hugging device or something?"

"Hmm…" Phineas put his left hand to his chin in thought.

"Yo P-Man; why you only got one arm?" Creggy G asked.

"And why do you walk so funny?" Chubby Z asked. "You in an accident or something?" He tilted his head to the side, studying the red head. "Or were you born that way?"

"That is quite enough." Ferb's face hardened as he took a step toward the men.

"Hey, he didn't mean anything by it," Deep Chris spoke up. "Chubby Z's filter is a little off."

The Brit grabbed him by the shirt collar, pulling the other man until he was nose to nose with him. "And so is his." He pointed to the red head. "I don't need some insensitive wild men harassing my brother." He threw Deep Chris to the ground, growling. "Off with you. Shoo. Go back to the forest."

The men scurried back into the trees, whimpering.

"Why did you do that?" Phineas looked at him, confusion written all over his face. "Those were my new friends. Why'd you chase them off?"

"They were harassing you. Real friends don't harass people in your…" his gaze trailed over the missing limb. "…condition."

"My condition?" The red head glared at him. "Don't coddle me Ferb; just because my arm is missing and I walk with a limp doesn't mean I can't defend myself."

"Yes but—"

"Go ahead and say it. I'm weak. That's how you've been treating me ever since the accident; you treat me like someone who needs to be protected and coddled. I'm more than capable of doing things on my own. I can get around just fine." Ferb went to say something, only to stop at his brother held a hand up. "Now if you'll excuse me, I'm going into the back to work on an invention I started."

"You can't invent." He clamped a hand over his mouth.

"I can invent just as well as anybody. All it takes is some minor modifications." Phineas stared at him. "Is there anything else you wanna tell me?"

His face hardened. "We start a new job out on the river today. The new boss wants us at the dock by ten."

"Fine. I'll be there." The Brit went to say something else, only to have his brother interrupt him. "And no, I don't need you to drive me. I'll take the car. That _I_ modified."

"Don't be late." His brother glared at him and he held up his hands in surrender. "Fine."

"Fine."

* * *

_10:05 a.m._

Ferb stood at the edge of the dock, impatiently tapping his foot. He took a step forward, glancing up and down the street.

"Mr. Fletcher?"

He turned around, eyeing the man standing in front of him. "Yes?"

"Name's Stan Pines." He vigorously shook the young man's hand. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you. You were the one who called about the job right? You and your brother?" He nodded. "Wonderful. Now where is he?"

"He appears to be running a bit behind."

"Oh. Well, I'm sorry to do this to you, but I'm afraid I can only wait ten more minutes for him to show up. I have to move these towboats outta here soon or I'll lose my money." The man glared at him. "Do I make myself clear?"

"Abundantly."

"Good." Stan left without another word.

The Brit sighed, glancing across the street at a diner. A slight smile quirked his lips as he made his way over, the bell above the door tinging as he stepped inside. He found a booth and sat down, staring at the sugar packets.

"Hey Ferb. What can I get you this morning?" A man wearing a white apron and a blue and white baseball cap with a blue pine tree on the front smiled at him. "The usual?"

He nodded.

"Where's your brother this morning? You two are hardly ever apart."

"Late."

Dipper nodded knowingly, disappearing behind the counter a moment before reemerging with a steaming pot of coffee in one hand. He poured the Brit a cup before motioning to the opposite side of the booth. "Mind if I join you a moment? Lazy Susan should have your order in a few minutes." He motioned around the diner. "We're not real busy this morning."

Ferb nodded as the other man slid into the booth across from him.

"Is everything alright? You seem down this morning. Quieter than usual." He paused in thought. "Is Phineas—"

"He's fine. We got into an argument this morning."

"Oh. Wow. That's a drag. I know how it goes though; fights with siblings are always tough. Mabel and I are twenty and we still fight."

"I belittled him. Implied he was weak and needed protection."

"Ouch. Where is he now?"

He shrugged.

Dipper waved the gesture away. "I wouldn't worry about it to much; I'm sure he'll be here soon. He probably just needed to cool off and lost track of time."

The young man sighed, glancing out the window. "Everyday, I watch towboats leave this town and everyday…" he gulped. "Everyday, I wish I could leave this life and never look back."

* * *

_10:10 a.m._

"There. That should do it." Phineas beamed, turning to the men behind him. "May I present to you…the tree hugger 2000!"

Leggy P looked up at the machine in awe. "Yo P-Man, that thing is _tight_."

"Yeah Dawg. Now we can hug lots of trees," Creggy G added.

"No problem guys. All it took was a few minor modifications. It just—hang on." He reached his left arm across his body, grabbing the phone from a pocket on his shirt, frowning at the name on the caller id as he picked up. "_What_? I told you I wouldn't be—hold on." He removed the phone from his ear, cocking his arm to the side. "So I'm running behind. Calm down Bro. I'll be there in—I told you, I don't need to be driven; it'll just waste more time." He sighed in exasperation. "I'm leaving _now_…"

"What's up P-Man?" Chubby Z asked.

"Sorry guys, but…I have to go. I'm needed down at the docks. I'm supposed to help my brother. You can take the Tree Hugger with you; I gotta run."

* * *

_11:00 a.m._

Ferb glanced at the clock on the wall of the diner and sighed.

Dipper winced. "I'm sorry Ferb. I'm sure Phineas is fine."

"I called him almost an hour ago. I don't have a good feeling about this…" the young man stood up, placing a few bills on the table before heading toward the front door. Only to pause as Mabel burst through.

"Dipper! Ferb! It's—it's Phineas!"

His heart shot into his throat. "What is it?"

"He-he—"

"He what?" His stomach churned as the sound of sirens reached his ears and an ambulance sped past the window.

"He-he—" Mabel swallowed, taking several deep breaths. "Phineas was racing down the road. I saw him fly past on my way to work. He was about ready to cross the train tracks when the signal sounded. He-he-he—" she broke into a sob. "He tried to beat the train Ferb. Crashed through the divide. Head on collision. He's gone."

"No!" Ferb raced out of the diner, Dipper and Mabel hot on his heels, following the Brit down to the tracks.

Dipper put a hand to his mouth in horror. "Oh no…"

Flames burst from the train, becoming higher as they hit spilled oil. And there in front of the train, crunched like an accordion, was the red head's car.

Tears stung the back of his eyes as he raced toward the Caution Tape, heart pounding. In one leap, he was almost over the barrier…only to be stopped by a policeman.

"I'm sorry; no civilians beyond this point. There has been a terrible accident. We need to keep the area clear for medical personnel."

"Let me in! I have to see him!"

"Was your brother on the train?"

"No, he was in the car."

The man's face paled. He placed both hands on Ferb's shoulders. "I'm sorry son, but your brother's gone. He didn't survive the crash; we had to use the jaws of life to pull his body out of the car."

"I have to see him!"

"You don't want to see him. His bones are broken in several places; body's charred and burned; he died on impact."

"But—"

"Son, if you see him, that is the last image of him you will ever have. I don't want that for you."

"I DON'T CARE!" With a wail, the Brit leaped over the barrier, racing toward the ambulance.

"Hey! You can't come over here!"

The police officer walked over. "Let him see the body."

"But Sir, it was pronounced dead at 11:09. He can't—"

"Let him see the body."

The EMT nodded, slowly lifting the white sheet from the body on the stretcher.

Ferb cried out, sobs racking his body as his sank to the ground, head in his hands. His brother was gone. Dead. Body charred and burned beyond recognition. "I didn't even tell him good-bye..."


End file.
